Indonesian President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) officially opened the G20 Summit, at The Apurva Kempinski Bali, Bandung Regency, Bali, Tuesday (11/15/2022).
Indonesia is currently holding an important celebration, namely the G20 Presidential which will be held from 1 December 2021 to the upcoming G20 Summit in November 2022. This means that Indonesia will host the G20 for a full year. What is the G20 and why was Indonesia chosen to host this important meeting of Ministers of Finance and Central Banks of the world's largest economies?
Quoted from the websites of the Ministry of Finance and Bank Indonesia, the G20 or Group of Twenty is a major forum for international economic cooperation whose members are the countries with the largest economies in the world consisting of 19 countries and 1 European Union institution. The G20 represents more than 60% of the world's population, 75% of global trade, and 80% of the world’s GDP. G20 members consist of South Africa, the United States, Saudi Arabia, Argentina, Australia, Brazil, India, Indonesia, the United Kingdom, Italy, Japan, Germany, Canada, Mexico, the Republic of Korea, Russia, France, China, Turkey, and the European Union.
Meanwhile, according to the sherpag20indonesia.ekon.go.id website, the formation of the G20 in 1999 arose as a result of the international community's disappointment with the failure of the G7 in finding solutions to the global economic problems faced at that time. The prevailing view at that time was that it was important for middle-income countries and those with systemic economic influence to be involved in negotiations to find solutions to global economic problems. The forum then embraces developed and developing countries to jointly overcome the main crises that hit Asia, Russia, and Latin America.
Initially, the G20 was a meeting of Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors, however, the G20 Summit has also been attended by Heads of State since 2008 and in 2010 a discussion was held regarding the development sector.
The role of the G20Â
1. Handling of the 2008 global financial crisis. The G20 is considered to have helped the world get back on track with growth and pushed for reforms in the financial sector.
2. Tax policy. The G20 has spurred the OECD to encourage the exchange of tax-related information to end tax evasion.
3. Contribution in handling the Covid-19 pandemic which includes deferring payment of foreign debts of low-income countries, injection of handling Covid-19, reduction/abolition of import duties and taxes, reduction of duties on vaccines, hand sanitizers, disinfectants, medical devices and medicines.
4. Other issues include trade, climate, and development.
The G20 was formed in 1999. Its main objective is to expand policy discussions that are beneficial for solving Global Finance problems. The G20 consists of the United States, Argentina, Brazil, Australia, Canada, Mexico, Turkey, Indonesia, South Korea, Japan, China, Germany, United Kingdom, India, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Italy, France, Russia, and one of the Regional Organizations European Union. Besides that, the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund was also involved.
